An exciting treatment gaining acceptance in orthopedics and sports medicine, called platelet-rich plasma therapy (PRP), is showing strong potential for accelerated healing of dental implant procedures, according to a prominent dental researcher and editor of the Journal of Oral Implantology.

James Rutkowski, DMD, PhD, reported at the recent annual scientific meeting of the American Academy of Implant Dentistry that platelet-rich plasma therapy can accelerate bone and tissue growth and wound healing and help assure long-term success of dental implant placements.

"What could be better than using the body's own regenerative powers to grow bone and soft tissue safely and quickly? For dental implant procedures, PRP treatments can jump start bone growth and implant adherence in just two weeks, which cuts down the time between implant placement and affixing the permanent crown," said Rutkowski.

Platelet-rich plasma is obtained from a small sample of the patient's own blood. It is centrifuged to separate platelet growth factors from red blood cells. The concentration of platelets triggers rapid growth of new bone and soft tissue. "There is very little risk because we are accelerating the natural process in which the body heals itself," said Rutkowski. "PRP speeds up the healing process at the cellular level, and there is virtually no risk for allergic reaction or rejection because we use the patient's own blood."

Rutkowski noted that some orthopedic physicians have been using PRP with success for painful and hard to treat injuries like tennis elbow, tendonitis and ligament damage. An avid Pittsburgh Steelers fan, Rutkowski couldn't resist mentioning that PRP was used in 2009 pre-game Super Bowl treatment for two Steeler players (Heinz Ward and Troy Polamalo), and both were instrumental in the team winning its 6th Super Bowl.

For dental surgery applications, Rutkowski explained that PRP is mixed as a gel

that can be applied directly in tooth sockets and other sites. It also is effective in cases when bone grafts are required to foster proper bone integration for implants. Growth factors in PRP preparations help the grafts bond faster with the patient's own bone. Rutkowski reported that in one of his studies there was increased radiographic bone density during the initial two weeks following PRP treatment when compared to sites that did not receive PRP treatment.

"Accelerated healing is a goal we've been seeking in implant dentistry and we now have treatment that activates the natural healing process. It is a very promising development for implant dentistry," explained Rutkowski. He estimates that about 10 percent of practicing implant dentists have used PRP treatment and predicts it will become more common as more studies are performed.

Hi Allan,
Making PRP is bit complex but here are the details of one way I make it! There is another method I use too.
I use PRP for dental implants and complex bone grafting in my office in Burbank, Ca.
Use a blood-collection kit to draw
blood directly into 6 yellow-topped
Vacu-Tubes, using at least a 19-gauge
needle. Gently rock each
tube back and forth to incorporate the
whole blood and ACD. Place the 6
tubes into the centrifuge and spin
them for 10 minutes.
If I am planning on intravenous
(IV) sedation, I may draw the whole
blood through a 17- or 18-gauge butterfly
needle into a 60-mL syringe.
First, draw 8 mL of ACD into the 60-
mL syringe. Next, using standard venous
blood collection techniques, draw
approximately 52 mL of whole blood
into the 60-mL syringe. Attach the
butterfly to the IV line. Release the arm
tourniquet/blood pressure cuff and
start the IV solution flowing. After
rocking the 60-mL syringe gently back
and forth to mix the anticoagulant and
the whole blood, place 9 mL of the
whole blood, with ACD, into the 6 10-
mL red-topped Vacu-Tubes (redtopped
to indicate that there are no additives
in the tube). The tubes are
placed into the centrifuge and spun for
a total of 11 minutes.
Using a 30-mL syringe with a sterile
16-gauge blunt catheter, draw off
the PPP from each Vacu-Tube by placing
the 16-gauge catheter in the yellow
top layer, leaving approximately 0.8
mL of the fluid.
Next, using the same blunt 16-gauge catheter attached
to a 10-mL syringe, draw off approximately
1.2 mL from the top of the
remaining fluid in each tube.
This will be composed of approximately
0.8 mL of PPP, the platelets, the cytoplasmic
granules, and approximately
0.3 mL of the very top of the RBCs. This will yield a total of 6
to 7 mL of fluid in the 10-mL syringe
harvested from the 6 Vacu-Tubes.
This is PRP! This is probably too much detail, but I hope this helps!
Ramsey A. Amin, D.D.S.
Diplomate of the American Board of Oral Implantology /Implant Dentistry
Fellow-American Academy of Implant Dentistry
Website ~ http://www.burbankdentalimplants.com
Visit My Blog ~ http://www.dentalimplantdentistryblog.com

Hello
Currently I have a full top denture and after 40years the upper front bone loss prevents implants. I will need the bone graft. Im considering the BMP method, but since discovered the PRP method. Would you mind explaining the complete PRP process.
DOes it replace the surgery or ??
Thank you

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About Ramsey A. Amin, DDS

Dr. Ramsey Amin has extensive
experience in surgical and
restorative implant dentistry.
As one of only less than 400
Diplomates of the American
Board of Oral Implantology/
Implant Dentistry (ABOI/ID)
he is considered an expert,
and board-certified in dental
implants. He is a former
instructor at the UCLA School
of Dentistry.

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